For the ninth consecutive year, local military and military veterans support organizations are the beneficiaries of the display of hundreds of large American flags east of Salisbury between Memorial Day and the start of summer. Though the flags have come down, the good they have provided will last for years.
Thanks to individual and organization donors, the flags were on display through the work of the three Salisbury-area Rotary clubs (The Rotary Club of Salisbury, the Rotary Club of Wicomico County, and the Salisbury Sunrise Rotary Club). The purpose of the Flags for Heroes project was to raise money for groups serving military veterans and overseas active duty military personnel. Each of the four recipient organizations has received $1,000.
Receiving Rotary-raised money to help with their programs are Operation We Care, U.S. Kennels, Inc., Heroes Haven, Inc., and DAV Eastern Shore Chapter 34.
- Operation We Care provides care packages to members of the armed forces
who are serving overseas.
- U.S. Kennels, Inc. is an organization that assists veterans battling Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder, brain damage, and other combat related disabilities by adopting rescue dogs and
training them to become service animals.
- Heroes Haven, Inc. transports injured veterans, police officers, emergency medical
service personnel, and fire fighters to the Eastern Shore of Maryland for a hunting experience
and Eastern Shore hospitality.
- The DAV Eastern Shore Chapter 34 mission is Building Better Lives for America’s
Disabled Veterans and Their Families. A key activity for this group is transporting veterans to
their medical appointments – including to the Perry Point Veterans Administration medical center in Cecil County, Maryland.
Rotarians and their supporters have donated $4,000 to local veterans and active duty military personnel support organizations through the Flags for Heroes display east of Salisbury this spring and summer. Shown, left to right, are Chris Hardy with U.S. Kennels, Inc.; Barbara Leonard with the Rotary Club of Salisbury; Commander Larry Jackson with the DAV Eastern Shore Chapter 34; Diana Merritt of Operation We Care; Rotary Club of Salisbury member Phil Whitman; Rotary Club of Wicomico County member Steve Mason, Ken Montville with the Rotary Club of Salisbury; and Don Murphy with the Salisbury Sunrise Rotary Club.
